[joe4702]

Left front intake and left front exhaust were out of spec (tight) at 15K.
The other 6 were all at the very bottom (tight) end of the spec. I elected
to adjust the two that were out of spec and leave the others alone.

Based on many other folks experiences, I expected all the valves to be
in spec at 15K. I was tempted to skip the check since the bike has
been running great, but was glad I didn't.

The CCT was the biggest pain. I ground down a long screwdriver
to fit the slot and was able to retract the arm rather than removing
the CCT.


PS
If you're using the Clymer manual, figure 66 on page 80 is incorrect.
The cam positions marked 'A' should be marked 'B' and vice versa.
That caused me about 15 minutes of confusion. The similar figure in
the factory shop manual is correct.

Also, there is no need to remove the fuel tank to get the rear valve cover
off as the Clymer manual states.

 

[cos]

Thanks for the tips.

 

[svfool]

hmm, well i guess i'd better break down and do that 5000 miles ago. looks like i have to learn something new. thanks.

 

[Yellow Nudist]

My 15k us right around the corner!

 

[pepperell]

did you notice any difference once you'd adjusted the valves? bike run better etc?

 

[Arvan]

did you notice any difference once you'd adjusted the valves? bike run better etc?

It's kind of rude not to answear this basic question.Really did you notice ;D

 

[wacky_woodchuck]

It's kind of rude not to answear this basic question.Really did you notice ;D

NO... for the small increase in getting your timing back... you'll not notice. We can get into the how's and why's having the correct clearance and how much they can better performance, but if you can feel a difference, you better be riding MotoGP.

 

[RandyO]

did you notice any difference once you'd adjusted the valves?  bike run better etc? 

you don't adjust you valves as much for performance as protection of the valves from burning. the danger of a valve getting too tight is that it will not completly close and while performance might be down, the big danger is heat getting at the valve stem and the seats burning, then it's more than just an adjustment,

 

[acedeluxe]

I was almost gonna ask that question about the 15k clearance. Probably have a dealer/mechanic do it as I could never get it right with my old VW beetle. thanks for bringing this up.

 

[joe4702]

Oops, sorry Pepperel, I didn't see your post for some reason.
I'm a bit chagrined to say, the bike is running worse at the moment.
There is an low amplitude, high-frequency engine vibe at 5K RPM and
above that wasn't there before.

I'm in the process of rechecking my work. Here's a thread about it:
http://forum.svrider.com/index.php?topic=44960.0

Even with the vibe,  I'm glad I did the valve adjust. Tight valves are a bad deal.
Now that I've done it, it's really not as complex as it seemed when reading about it.

Few things I will do differently next time - 1) mark two pins on the cam chain w/magic marker
so I know for sure the chain went back on in the same place 2) adjust all the valves on
the same cylinder to about the same clearance. 3) Pull the CCT all the way out
so I know for sure it gets reset correctly. Doing these would have eliminated some
of the possible things that might be causing the vibration.

 

[rcmark]

I just checked mine at 12k miles (2001 SV650 NaKed) they were all in spec.

 

[joe4702]

I seem to recall that most times someone reports valves
out of spec at 15K it was on a 2002 bike.
Perhaps just a coincidence?